In the Wasatch

Twin Lakes at Sunrise

Where do you start when your going to write about the past two months?  I think if you were to ask my friends it would start with an email, text or phone call saying something like: "Hey want to head out for a run?" Funny thing is they don't respond as much as they used too.  "Umm I have to wash the dog..."
Unlikely, but yes I realize I am slightly or rather majorly obsessed.

Mt Baldy on Alta - Brighton loop

More and more I have grown to realize that my obsession with running is mine and mine alone.  Over this last year I have grown into the community of Trail and Ultra running and now have found my home.  With the assistance of support groups such as  the Wasatch Mountain Wranglers and others I have been able to focus my obsession even more.  To make matters even worse my wife has been so supporting of my running that I think she is trying reverse psychology. Ha! Its not going to work honey!

Gobblers Knob w/ Tim

One of the hardest things that I have to do is explain what I am doing to other people, in particular family.  Most people like to hear about distance and elevation.  But for me the best part comes with the experience.  It could be a short run to a peak and back like View Benchmark or it could be an all day run through the back country like Kings Peak, but not matter the what and where its the experiences that drive what I do.  I find it almost impossible to describe these experiences, smells, feelings, sights.  Words and blog posts cannot really describe them.  

Wasatch Wranglers - Timpendance Night Run

For instance, in the picture above I was able to head out on a Timp night run with a group from the Wasatch Mountain Wranglers.  In terms of runs it was fairly standard.  We had a fantastic time.  There was one thing that made this particular summit different. I forgot my headlamp.  Being a night run this is a very important piece of equipment to have.  Fortunately someone gave me a loner. Unfortunately it had older batteries in it.  This made the decent very difficult since I couldn't see until I was on top of rocks in the trail. The experience was awesome, I felt like I could hear and see almost anything.  The night was alive, it was fantastic.

Bear Canyon trail coming back from Lone Peak

Another experience was when Tim and I decided to go up Lone Peak.  We stopped short of the summit because of weather and Tim wasn't feeling all that well.  When we were coming down the Bear Canyon trail it felt like I was running on top of the world.  I really didn't expect that from this trail.

There were many other runs that I did this summer but another that stands out was my double Timp that I did.  I had been debating on if I was going to attempt it this summer or not.  I knew in my head I could do it I just had to commit.  With the help of my Wife and some Wranglers I headed out one morning for the first summit of the day.  It was a normal busy day on the trail, many groups of scouts and students heading up and down the summit. At one point in time I had decided that I didn't think I had it in me, but by the time I reached the bottom I knew that I had to go back up. I said goodbye to everyone, restocked and headed back out.  It became more than some adventure on a mountain.  People had recognized that I was on my way back up and asked what I was doing.  Some even cheered and gave me words of encouragement.  But in a completely different way I felt like I could almost feel the mountain.  Again to complex to describe in words, but its almost like we were one.  I finished that last summit with a total time of around 8 hours.  When I got done I almost felt sad to leave, like some how I had made another friend and was now leaving them behind.  I had now earned my TURD title as Dave Crockett had put it. (BTW it stands for Timpanogos Ultra Running Dude. )

Quest for Kings w/ some really cool guys

Quest for Kings (Kings Peak) this last weekend was another one of those runs that turned out to be more than what was expected.  To be honest I was terrified of going.  Don't get me wrong, I wanted to run Kings, and I wanted to run it bad. But being somewhat of an introvert I was nervous about heading out to meet with a group of guys (and gals) I really hadn't spent much time with.  It was a real stretch for me personally.  As with always my wife pushed me out the door with her great words of encouragement.  Long story short I had the time of my life.  I was hooting and hollering going up gunsight pass.  The views were amazing and the feeling was even more.  It became a very personal experience for me.

If there is one thing that I continue to learn this summer is that the distances might challenge me and push me further, but its the experience that I yearn for.  Its what keeps me going at 4 in the morning.  Knowing that when my feet hit the dirt and the sweat starts that I will be there to get that experience, good or bad.  And that ultimately it will become part of who I am and who I want to be.